Retelling: Beauty and the Beast
by starsandfire24
Summary: This is a retelling of the original story with some elements from the two Disney versions. I decided to throw a twist into this one that I don't think has been done. Just keep in mind that its not finished before you get upset about anything, please.
1. Chapter 1

I don't own the original story, or anything you might recognize from its many renditions. This is merely my own retelling of the story with a new twist.

Once upon a time, a princess vanished from her home. The kingdom was a very small one, and it is long forgotten by history, but in its time, the kingdom was pleasant and prosperous. There were several small villages spread throughout the lush countryside, and a single castle near the center of the territory. The castle was not so large as some, but it was still beautiful. The kingdom had many skilled artisans, and they had come from miles around to put their best work into the turrets and walls, carving beautiful details into silver-white stone, so that the palace glowed like the moon both day and night. The King and Queen were good, wise people and they were always throwing parties for nobles and peasants alike.

Now, after ruling for some years, the King and Queen had two children. The elder of the two was a boy, the Crown Prince, whose name was Nicholas. The younger was girl named Emilia. Both children were beautiful and good, though they often got into mischief as children will. Both had dark hair like their father, but while Nicholas' eyes were the deep blue-green of forest shadows, Emilia had eyes of clear, crystalline grey with dark rings about them, so that they seemed as luminous as the palace they lived in. The children would often play in the gardens and shared their things freely with children from the surrounding villages who came to visit the palace with their parents. When their parents would host parties, they would also have their own small parties with plenty of sweets and laughter for everyone. Nicholas and Emilia loved one another dearly, and each called the other their best friend.

One day, the Queen became very ill with a disease no one knew. The King frantically sent for one healer after another, but nothing anyone did had any effect. Within a few weeks, the Queen had died. The King fell into despair, and the light seemed to go out of the kingdom. Even the sun seemed cold and far away to everyone. Nicholas and Emilia clung to one another desperately, as the King seemed to have forgotten that he had children at all.

As the weeks turned to months, a terrible change came over the King. His heart grew hard and cold, and he began making harsh laws for his people. He outlawed music and dancing, and he forbid anyone but the nobles and servants from coming to the palace. Soon, he was harsh even to his children. One day, he found Nicholas and Emilia playing in the gardens in front of the castle. Emilia was lisping a lullaby their mother used to sing to them in her clear, childish voice. For reasons even he did not fully understand, the sound of his small daughter's voice enraged the King. He all but ran toward the two children, roaring for Emilia to stop singing.

Little Emilia had never seen her father behave in such a manner, and at that moment, he looked nothing at all like her father. In fact, he looked like a terrible beast. She was so frightened that she leapt to her feet and dashed toward the castle gates with the enraged King behind her and Nicholas sitting frozen in shock where he had been listening to his sister. Emilia ran so quickly that it seemed her small bare feet did not touch the ground. She hardly broke her stride as she slipped through the bars of the gate. One of the guards tried to catch hold of the little princess as she passed, thinking perhaps to calm her, but he only succeeded in snatching the small crown from her dark hair.

The King stood at the gates and shouted after his daughter, "You wish to leave?! So be it! Don't ever let me see you here again!" These words began his undoing.

Emilia did not return, though her brother waited beside the gate and paced the grounds until after darkness fell. The King, seeming to wake from some awful dream, found himself filled with remorse for his cruelty and hasty words. He sent out a message throughout the kingdom for everyone to search for the princess. When no one found her, he sent messages to other kingdoms for a hundred miles around. No one succeeded, however, and it was as though Emilia had vanished into thin air.

The years passed, and the King's guilt only added to the darkness growing in his heart. Soon, it spread to his son as well. Nicholas had grieved for his sister and friend at first, but the King spoke terrible words to him and convinced him that Emilia had abandoned them. Under his father's influence, Emilia's mischief and shortcomings seemed to grow while the sweetness of her nature faded. He came to remember his sister as a wicked, spiteful child, whom he had always hated. Soon, he forgot her altogether. Instead, he became absorbed in money and power, just as his father did. The kingdom grew larger and the royal family grew richer. They expanded their castle until it was one of the finest for miles around, but there was no beauty in all its magnificence.

Eventually, when Nicholas was nineteen, his father died, and Nicholas himself became King. He threw lavish parties for days, inviting only the wealthiest and most well-known of the royals and nobles. One night, during the feasting and balls, a knock came at the castle doors. The head servant, Cogsworth, came to fetch the King from the ball, claiming that he had a most unusual visitor who insisted she needed to speak to him immediately. The King angrily strode into the entrance hall and was enraged to see nothing more than a bent old woman dressed in rags.

"What do you mean, hag? You have interrupted my coronation ball," Nicholas shouted, stopping several feet from the woman and wrinkling his nose at her, though the only smell in the room was an earthy one a little like lavender. The woman raised her head as he approached, revealing a face deeply lined with age and wild silver hair.

"Many apologies, Your Majesty," came a voice like the cracking of ice, "I am merely a humble traveler, but I came here long ago and I remembered the kindness of your parents. I hoped that I might seek shelter here for a night. It is very cold outside for one as old as I. I would gladly offer His Majesty my most prized possession in return for any kindness he might show a poor old woman." She moved and extended a hand from her ragged cloak. In it was a single, blossoming red rose. Anyone else would have been astonished by the beauty of the flower. Its petals were a deep, rich red that seemed to dance in the light, and there was such an air of life and power about it that some might have even claimed that it was glowing.

Nicholas, blinded by the ugly things in his heart and mind, sneered at the gift, "Away, crone! What use have I for a single flower? Are you blind as well as ugly? Look around you! I have many flowers here far finer than that pitiful rose."

Suddenly, the old woman's eyes seemed to glow a brilliant gold. She began to straighten her stooped figure, and as she did so, her rags fell away and the wrinkles on her face became smooth. Within seconds, she stood a head taller than the now horrified Nicholas. Her silver hair flowed down her back and she wore a long robe of rich, dark blue cloth that was set with what appeared to be tiny stars. Her lovely face looked hard and cold as she gazed on the King. "You are a hard man, Nicholas. You have no kindness or love in your heart. You shall now pay for all your greed and arrogance, lest you do more harm than your father."

Nicholas, forgetting his status for once, fell to his knees and clasped his hands before him, "Please, my lady! I see now that you are a person of great influence. Have mercy upon my lowly self. I would be honored to host one so powerful as you."

The enchantress shook her head almost sadly and once more extended the hand with the rose, "You have already revealed the man you are. It is time that the ugliness of your heart was reflected for all to see, so that none might be deceived by you."

Nicholas found himself rising into the air, and though he cried out for mercy, the Enchantress did not relent. His body twisted and shifted in midair, and he sprouted curving horns, sharp fangs, and thick fur. Within moments, he collapsed on the floor, growling and gasping for air. At that moment, the doors to the ballroom burst open. The guests at the ball had heard the commotion and the castle guards were called to arms. When they saw the terrible creature crouched on the floor, people began to scream and shout.

"Oh! Look at it!"

"How awful!"

"Where is the King?"

"That thing must have eaten him! See the tattered robes?!"

"Capture it!" the guards rushed toward the King, who was struggling to stand, their swords raised.

Nicholas roared in terror and staggered a few steps before collapsing once more and burying his face in his new paws. He expected to feel the bite of steel, but suddenly all was silent. He slowly raised his head and found the strangest sight yet before him. The guests and guards had all vanished. Instead, the hall was filled with his other servants, who appeared to be asleep, though they stood on their feet.

"Boy, look to me!" ordered the Enchantress.

Nicholas cringed away from the tall woman, who now stood beside him. "Please, if you're going to kill me, just do it. Only…" he hesitated and glanced at the servants, "Perhaps you should leave them be. They're only servants after all."

The Enchantress raised one eyebrow at him and nodded slowly, "I shall spare you all. I have seen the hearts of these simple people. They remember you as you once were, and for their sake and the sake of that boy from long ago, I am giving you a chance to redeem yourself." Nicholas stared, his mouth hanging open. The Enchantress continued, "I shall leave this rose with you. You have until the last petal falls to complete the conditions of your redemption. First, you must right the wrong that which was done long ago and call back the moonchild who once filled this place with light. Second, learn to love another and earn their love in return. Only then will you and all you see here be free. Fail and you shall remain as you are until the end of your life." With these words, she let the flower go, and now it truly did glow. The light grew brighter and brighter, so that Nicholas had to hide his eyes.

When he looked up again, he saw that the servants had changed. They had all become like household objects, though they were moving about and crying out fearfully to one another. Then he noticed that the Enchantress was gone. Instead, only the rose remained, hovering several feet above the floor and glowing softly.


	2. Chapter 2

"Papa, must you go away again?" asked a pretty, dark-haired young woman of an older man who had just climbed into the loaded wagon outside their house.

The old man's brown eyes sparkled as he replied, "I'm afraid so, my little Adeline. Don't worry, though. I'll be back before you have time to miss me. Just enjoy your books and do your chores and three days will seem no time at all."

The girl lowered her head for a moment, then turned shining silvery eyes on her father, "I will miss you, Papa, but I'll be happy knowing you'll be back soon. And after you sell your inventions at the Fall Festival, you won't have to go anywhere again until next Spring."

Her father laughed, "That's my girl. I must be off now, I'm afraid. Look for me sometime after noon three days from now." With that, he tapped the reins and the faithful brown horse started down the road away from the cottage.

Adeline walked to the top of the steps to the cottage door and stood there, waving to her father until he traveled around a bend and out of sight. The brilliant colors of autumn shown through the morning fog as the sun began to rise and struck the trees of the forest near the village. Adeline sighed and looked toward the village itself. She needed to return a book and if she wanted to do so before the streets became too crowded she would have to start now.

She ducked inside the cottage and fetched a light cape to protect her against the chill in the crisp autumn air and picked up her book and the shopping basket before going back outside and starting down the path into the village. It was still early, and the people were just beginning their daily routines. Adeline had seen them do the same things every morning for the fifteen years she had lived with her Papa. Her Mama had died several years before.

Of course, she thought with a frown, they weren't really her parents, though she loved them as if they were. Her Papa found her wandering the fields near the Old Forest with a raging fever when she was very young. The village healer had guessed her about four or five years old, but she hadn't been able to tell them anything about who she was or where she came from once her fever broke. So, her Papa and Mama, who had no children of their own, had taken her in.

She pondered these things and daydreamed about where she might have lived before and who her parents might have been as she strolled through the village to the book shop. She often wondered if she had any siblings and if any of them might still be living.

"Good morning, Adeline! You're out early!" the bookseller, Nathaniel Rousseau, greeted her cheerfully as she walked into the shop. He was the only person in the village who had been there for less time than herself. He had moved to their village from Paris, though Adeline couldn't understand why. He was only a few years older than her, and the two had become fast friends when he moved there.

"Adeline mentally shook herself and smiled, "Good morning, Nathan. I came to return my book and ask if you have anything new."

The young man laughed and replied, "Not since yesterday, mademoiselle."

Adeline shrugged her shoulders as she placed her book on the shelf and ran her fingers lightly across the spines of the other books. After a few moments, she noticed a book about the history of the kingdom. She had always read fairy tales and adventure stories before, but for some reason she now found herself drawn to this one. She pulled it off the shelf and brushed one hand across the green leather cover, "I think I'll read this one next."

Nathan smiled and lifted one eyebrow, "Taking an interest in the local history?"

Adeline turned the pages with a thoughtful expression, "Oh, I just thought I'd try something a little different."

The bookseller laughed, "Well, let me know what you think of it. Its…one of my favorites."

Adeline smiled and hugged the book, "I'll be certain to take good care of it then." She tucked the book carefully into her basket and set it with her cloak behind the shop's counter. Placing her hands on her hips, she looked around the shop and asked, "Now then, what needs doing?"

Nathan shook his head, "I've told you before, Adeline, you can borrow books any time. You don't owe me anything."

Adeline snorted, "And I've told you I _want_ to help. It breaks up my otherwise monotonous routine and I rather enjoy talking to you while we work."

Nathan shrugged, "Alright, the floor needs sweeping, I guess." As he gestured at the broom he gave her a crooked smile, "I like talking to you, too, Adeline."

Adeline returned the smile as she began brushing the dust on the floor into a pile, "Goodness, who came in here yesterday, a herd of cattle? This floor is filthy."

"It may as well have been. The schoolmaster brought his herd of students in here. Sticky hands and dirty boots make for a messy bookshop," Nathan said wryly.

Adeline laughed, "I would imagine so. I'm surprised the place is still standing."

Nathan picked up a rag and began dusting the shelves as Adeline swept. For several minutes they worked in relative silence, listening to the sounds of the awakening village. Sunlight spilled in through the front windows, making the floors shine where Adeline had swept them.

"Father's gone to the market again," Adeline commented suddenly.

"Didn't he just come back last week?" Nathan asked, looking at her over his shoulder.

She nodded, "This should be his last trip until Spring, though."

"How long will he be gone?"

Adeline sighed, "Three days. It seems like an eternity, though. The cottage is almost eerie without all the clinking and sawing from his inventions."

"Nathan frowned, "Will you be alright?"

Adeline nodded, "Of course, I always am."

Nathan hummed, "Yes, but its so close to the first snow. If you need anything, anything at all, please, let me know."

Adeline smiled at him, "I will, thank you, Nathan."

Soon the clock in the village square was chiming the hour, and Adeline donned her cloak and left the shop with a wave as she headed toward the market. As she passed a group of women, she overheard part of their conversation.

"Yes, that's what I heard! That inventor's daughter is going to marry that stranger!"

"Well she'd better! She goes to his shop almost every day."

"Not surprising, given her…situation."

Adeline pressed her lips together and frowned at the path, but continued on the way to the market. She was used to people talking about how strange she was. It made her angry, though to hear them saying such things about her friend. It did no good to argue with them, though. She'd tried once when she was younger, and it only resulted in them telling her father how wild and insolent she was. She hated to think she had embarrassed her father, so she usually kept quiet even if it meant biting her tongue./p

In any case, the people in the village talked about everything from her eyes to the way she walked to her love for books to her mysterious origins. They'd probably find something new to criticize before the sun set.

Adeline continued down the street into the market in the square. She finished her shopping with her mind on the book she had picked up. She responded absently to the greetings of various villagers, and she sighed in relief when she left the village on the path back to her own home. She couldn't wait to finish up her chores, make a pot of tea, and spend the evening by the fire. She smiled to herself, thinking she would have to pay especial attention to the details of the book so that she and Nathan could chat about it when she finished.


	3. Chapter 3

Hello everyone! Thank you so much for following my story! I apologize that I cannot update daily, but I'm currently working in small increments of time. I use this as my study break from preparing for exams. That means I only get a little done at a time. That said, I should be able to update once every few days. Don't mind it too much if I vanish for about a week in early December, though. My brain might be incapable of producing anything except law terms.

The first day and most of the second passed without incident. Adeline read her book, cooked for herself, tended the chickens and cow, and even had Nathan over for tea in the afternoon of the second day to discuss the book. Altogether, things were just as quiet as ever. Actually, they were a little quieter with the absence of her father's sawing, tapping, and occasional explosions. She couldn't wait for him to return and was already planning to make his favorite dinner for him when he came home.

The book she had been reading proved to be even more interesting than she had originally, thought, but there was something peculiar about it. The author sometimes talked about the area as if it were its own kingdom instead of being ruled by the larger government of the province. Of course, there were plenty of small principalities in that part of Europe, but the book seemed to suggest both that the area was independent from the province and that it had been ruled by it for several centuries. She had asked Nathan about it, but he had only shrugged, saying that perhaps the author was a little confused. In any case, he hadn't read anything to the contrary. An idea began to grow in Adeline's head of going with her Papa to the fair in the spring so she could visit the library in the city where it took place. With any luck, they wouldn't mind her being there and she could do more research. Perhaps Nathan would go with them in case the scholars wouldn't let a woman in alone (or at all).

She was sitting on a bench in the autumn sunlight behind the cottage when a frantic whinny jerked her out of picking apart a particularly confused passage. She stared in alarm as Phillipe, their horse came tearing across the fields from the direction of the forest, the cart lurching crazily behind him. 'Well, the farmers won't be happy about that,' she thought haphazardly as she closed her book, stood, and placed it on the seat. Then she hurried out to meet the horse, stopping a fair distance from him but blocking his path. She raised her hands and called, "Whoa! Phillipe! Whoa!"

At the sound of her voice the horse seemed to come out of a sort of frenzied trance. He slowed and began stamping around and swinging his head, snorting all the while. Adeline eased toward him, murmuring soothingly even as her mind registered that her Papa was nowhere to be seen. As soon as Phillip settled a bit, she took hold of the reins and walked back to look in the cart. The crates containing her Papa's inventions had been tossed pell-mell around the cart. However, there was no sign of her Papa. Adeline's brow creased as she frowned back toward the trees. The sun was setting and it would be a cold night. She knew the route through the forest, but it was hard to determine how far her father would have made it before somehow losing Phillipe and the cart. If Phillipe had wandered at all, or if they had taken a wrong turn, he could be closer than if they had gone straight in and straight back.

Adeline chewed her lip for a moment, then nodded to herself. She quickly led Phillipe into their barn and unhitched him, replacing the hauling tack with riding tack in record time. Then she mounted up and rode off at a swift canter toward the head of the forest trail.

Once inside the forest, she slowed to a steady trot. Phillipe had been running recently and she knew he would likely stop or balk if she pushed him too hard. She also wanted to scan carefully for any sign of her Papa. Her silver eyes flickered across the leaves, brambles, and the path itself, searching for anything that looked out of place.

"Don't worry, Papa, I'll find you," she muttered to herself as the early twilight of the forest began to descend. She shivered as a chill wind cut through her light walking cloak and dress, but she did her best to ignore it and focus on the task at hand.

It was almost completely dark by the time Adeline discovered anything out of the ordinary on the path. She was squinting at the ground and scolding herself for failing to bring a lantern when she spotted a place at the side of the path where a great deal of brush had been trampled. The fact that the wood on the broken ends shone white instead of dusty grey told her that the damage was fresh. As she carefully steered Phillipe through the brush, she realized that behind it was a disused path. She frowned, wondering where it went. From the direction, it seemed to wind deeper into the heart of the forest.

She briefly considered riding back to the village and trying to gather a few villagers to help her search, but quickly dismissed the idea. If she couldn't remember where the old path was it could be morning before anyone was able to search properly. If something had happened to her Papa, it could be too late to help him by then. So she took a deep breath and urged Phillipe onward down the narrow, leaf-strewn path.

She could barely watch the path as she had to lean low over the horse's neck to avoid the twisting branches that hung low overhead. She considered the path itself to distract herself from her increasing worry for her Papa. It looked as though it had been years since anyone besides Phillipe and the cart had been here. The forest seemed to have grown in onto the path, making it narrower. It was almost wide enough for the cart and she saw numerous places where branches had been snapped off. She concluded from this that they had been travelling quickly because if they had been going slowly most of the branches would have bent and snapped back into place. She wondered what had spooked Phillipe so badly that he had not only left the road but also gone tearing down this old path.


	4. Chapter 4

Hello, my friends! I've finally recovered from my exams and I'm ready to do some writing.

As she was considering the possible causes for the horse's peculiar behavior, the path suddenly opened up and Adeline was able to sit up and look around. She gasped and her eyes widened as she took in the most prominent feature of the clearing: a massive iron gate. Phillipe suddenly stopped and whinnied, flicking his ears backward. Adeline patted his neck and muttered, "Whoa, boy. Its alright." She dismounted and held the reins as she continued forward on foot. Phillipe reluctantly followed her. She examined the gate for a moment, on either side stood stone soldiers staring out into the trees. As she looked down, she spotted a crumpled shape on the ground and pounced on it. Examining the object, she realized that it was, indeed her father's travelling hat.

She frowned through the gate and managed to make out a large structure in the distance. She wished the moon would rise so she might be able to see the grounds more clearly. Nevertheless, she stood and tucked the hat under her arm before pushing on the gate. To her surprise, the gate began to move despite the screeching of the hinges. She opened it wide enough for herself and Phillipe to step through and then started toward the structure. As she approached, her curiosity and concern increased. She could see that the structure was an opulent castle with ornate carvings and statues. As she drew close to the large doors that she supposed were the main entrance, Phillipe suddenly stopped and snorted.

"Alright, Phillipe, you can stop here," Adeline said with a sigh. She looked around and spotted a twisted tree nearby. She coaxed Phillipe closer to it and finally managed to tie the reins around the trunk. Then she petted the horse's nose for a moment before turning to face the doors. She took out her Papa's hat and considered it for a moment before placing it on her head. Then, she took a deep breath and strode forward, paying no attention to Phillipe's whinnies of protest. She reached down and scooped up a large stick before proceeding up the steps to the door.

The castle certainly looked abandoned, which raised many questions that she didn't have time to ponder, but she still felt odd just going inside, so she reached up and tapped on the door with one hand. As she expected, she received no reply, and she tried the handle finding it unlocked. She kicked a chunk of stone into the gap to prevent the door from swinging shut behind her, just in case it became stuck or the inner handle didn't work, then walked inside.

The entrance hall was only dimly lit by the dusky light from windows that rose on either side of the doors. The hall itself was massive, with a huge staircase at the far end. Had she not been on edge, she might have noted that the air lacked the stagnant feeling of a place that has long stood unoccupied or that it was perhaps a bit less dusty than an abandoned castle should be. However, after looking around the darkened hall and ignoring the tomb-like aspect of the shadowy ceiling, she began to cautiously make her way across the room. She noticed that several doors led off the hall, and she ventured to try the largest door and one beside the stairs, but both were locked. Frowning, she looked up into the deeper shadows at the top of the grand staircase. Thus far she had not dared to call out for her father, knowing her voice would echo around the room. Some instinct out of the distant past, from a time when people huddled in caves and wore only furs, told her that she couldn't be certain that she and perhaps her father were the only people...or things in the castle.

Setting her jaw and adjusting her grip on the stick, Adeline walked around the banister and began to slowly climb the stairs. She was thankful for the aged carpeting that lined the steps and muffled her footsteps, but she still paused at any real or imagined sound that whispered through the halls. When she reached the top, she found herself at the end of a long hallway. She was a bit relieved to find that there were several windows letting in the twilight, but it didn't make much difference. She sighed softly. It would take forever to search the entire castle, and if her Papa was somewhere in the building, it might take too long. Upon this realization, she took a deep breath and beat back the smothering feeling that she should keep silent.

"Papa!" she called out. Her voice was at half its full volume, but it still echoed around the corridor and back into the entrance hall. Adeline paused, her heart pounding in her chest as she strained for any sign that her Papa or something else had heard her. The castle remained just as still as before. She tried again, "Papa! Are you here? Its me, Adeline!" She listened as the echoes faded, and she was about to call again when a small noise from behind her made her whirl around.

The corridor extended in the other direction as well, though not nearly as far. She realized that she hadn't noticed this area before because there were no windows in that much shorter portion of the hallway. Now, however, she could see a door open near the end of it, and through it she could see the faint flickering light of a lantern or candle. With a gasp, she lifted her stick and walked quickly toward the door, peering into the shadows on either side. She reached it without incident and poked her head around the door frame. This area of the castle was much plainer. It was a tiny landing space at the base of a set of spiraling stairs, all made of rough stone. The light was coming from somewhere just around the first bend.

Adeline walked through the door and started up the steps, stick still lifted. She rounded the bend and found only a little golden candelabra sitting in an alcove. She frowned at it, "That's odd. I was sure there was no light before, so surely someone..." She looked uncertainly up the stairs, then swallowed and called softly, "Hello? Is anyone there?"

Suddenly, the faint sound of someone coughing reached her ears from further up the stairs, which were shadowy once more beyond the alcove. She immediately seized the candelabra in one hand and hurried toward the sound. Perhaps even if it wasn't her father this person would know if he was in the castle somewhere. As she reached the top of the stairs, she realized that she was in one of the castle's towers. She stood in a small, semi-circular room with a single window in one wall and a large, iron door in the other. The coughing had clearly come from beyond the door. Edging toward it, she tried to make out who was inside.

"Who's there?" asked a frightened voice.

"Papa! Papa, is that you?" Adeline gasped in horror as she hurried right up to the bars. Sure enough, her father's face appeared at the door. She put the candelabra and stick on the floor and reached through the bars to take his hands.

"Adeline? My child, what are you doing here?" he asked, looking at her and squeezing her hands in a slightly bewildered manner.

"I came to find you! Phillipe came home in a panic, and I was worried something awful had happened to you! What on earth are you doing in this abandoned castle?! And in that cell!?" Adeline babbled in a rush.

He shook his head firmly, "No no. You shouldn't be here. Its not abandoned, Adeline! The master of this castle...he's...he locked me up here. But never mind that, run! Get out of here before its too late!"

Adeline frowned and cried, "I'm not going without you! Who's this master and why would he lock you up?"

Her Papa opened his mouth to answer, but instead a frightened gasp was the only sound he made as his eyes glanced over her shoulder and widened in horror.

Suddenly, something seized her shoulder roughly and yanked her away from her Papa, causing her to lose her balance and topple to the floor. The candles went out so that the only light was from the rising moon outside. A snarl rent the air and a deep, grating voice asked, "Who are you!? How dare you trespass in my castle!?"

Adeline shook in terror, but managed to pick herself up as she replied, "I'm...I'm Adeline, and I was looking for my father. Why is he...why is he locked up?"

"I'll ask the questions," the shadowy figure roared. "Your father is a thief! And I expect you are as well!"

Adeline's fear was smothered by indignation, "My father is not a thief!" She had straightened her figure and taken a step forward as she spoke, but she shrank back again as the figure gave a deep growl and she realized that it was many times larger than her.

"Leave my daughter alone, you horrible...!" her father shouted. He was cut off by a roar from the figure. Adeline was horrified to see a set of massive fangs reflecting the moonlight. The creature talking to her was no human man.

"He took a rose from my garden. That makes him a thief," the creature growled.

"A rose?" Adeline said quietly. "Oh, that was for me. I asked him to bring me a rose." She looked toward the cell door, where her father was pressed against the bars. Taking a shaking breath, she tried a different tactic, "Please, sir. My father is old and ill. He won't live long in this tower. Let him go and take me in his place, as its my fault he's here."

"No! Adeline, no!" her father cried, stretching his hands out toward her.

Adeline set her jaw and lifted her chin as the creature seemed to consider her. At last, he asked in a much quieter voice, "You would take his place? And stay here in the castle forever?"

Adeline pressed her lips together for a moment. Forever was a long time for a rose, but she supposed this tyrant wouldn't see the logic of that argument, "Yes. I give you my word."

"Done!" growled the creature. In a single motion, he produced a set of keys and grabbed Adeline roughly by the arm. She fought the urge to scream as the creature unlocked the cell and dragged her father out as well. Would he eat them both? However, he shoved her into the cell and slammed the door, then turned to drag her father toward the stairs.

"Adeline! No!" her Papa shouted, struggling futilely against the creature's grip.

"Papa! Wait!" she cried in reply, reaching her hands through the bars as the creature and her father vanished into the shadows of the stairs, her father's cries echoing off the stones until the door at the bottom slammed shut behind them.


End file.
